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Beaverton Schools

Art Literacy Program

​Looking for a way to make a valuable contribution to your child's art education? The Art Literacy program enriches the lives of both students and volunteers. We need 2-3 volunteers for each classroom and are always in search of art loving volunteers to join our team. We hold an AM training meetings and presentations are jointly scheduled between you and your classroom teacher. 

Questions: 
But I don't know anything about art. No problem! All you need is an interest in art and a desire to have fun and learn. Parents all get to learn as much as the students do! 

How do I know what to present in the classroom? We train the volunteers at the start of each new artist presentation. The coordinator presents the lesson to the volunteers and walks them through the planned art production. The lesson comes to us and includes a slide presentation with narrative, questions and answers, examples and a choice of the art project. You even get to try the project yourself, if your time allows! 

What kind of time commitment are we talking about? Total is approx.. 2.5-3 hours per artist 6 times a school year. This time includes a 60 to 90 minute training meeting for each artist and a classroom presentation of an hour, plus time for set-up and clean-up. Two lessons are taught between October and winter break and four more between January and May, for a total of six. 

Materials for each artist or culture focus are supplied in a box that is shared on a rotational basis throughout the district schools. There are currently more than 110 different boxes that rotate yearly through the school district Elementary and Middle schools. 

Money is donated by each school's PTC to cover the basic costs of the materials used in the lesson. Art Literacy can boast an enormous "bang for the buck": six presentations, of approximately an hour or more, six art productions by each student, and a variety of special art fairs or cultural events given at schools throughout the year - all organized, administered, and taught by volunteers.